Beyond Room 108http://www.beyondroom108.com
Because Home, Family, & Finances MatterThu, 24 Mar 2016 18:39:35 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.8.1http://www.beyondroom108.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/copy-Blog-4-x-5-photos-Page-001-288x300.jpgBeyond Room 108http://www.beyondroom108.com
3232Perfect Easter Eggshttp://www.beyondroom108.com/perfect-easter-eggs/
http://www.beyondroom108.com/perfect-easter-eggs/#respondThu, 24 Mar 2016 18:39:35 +0000http://www.beyondroom108.com/?p=277
Ready to get those eggs prepared for Sunday? What’s the best way to do it? Many people overcook their eggs and that results in a gray-green color around the yolk. It isn’t harmful, but it doesn’t look the best.

To cook your eggs without the green, place a single layer of eggs in a pan. Cover them with enough cold water to bring the water an inch over the tops of the eggs. Heat them just to boiling. Remove from heat and set a timer for fifteen minutes (for large eggs). Then drain off the water and cool the eggs with running cold water. For more details, The American Egg Board gives some excellent directions as well as a video.

Remember, eggs, even if hard-cooked, should not be left out at room temperature for more than two hours. If the Easter Bunny hides your eggs more than two hours before your egg hunt, you should not eat them.

Eggs are a nutritional powerhouse. With only about 80 calories, protein, and lots of vitamins and minerals, they are a great addition to a healthy diet.

Look what’s blooming in my garden today! I am looking forward to spring and these little iris are always fun.

]]>http://www.beyondroom108.com/march-blooms/feed/0Caffeine: How Much is Too Much?http://www.beyondroom108.com/caffeine-how-much-is-too-much/
http://www.beyondroom108.com/caffeine-how-much-is-too-much/#respondTue, 22 Mar 2016 00:41:59 +0000http://www.beyondroom108.com/?p=270
You may not have heard, but as they do every five years, the U.S. has recently released the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. This year they added something new – the consumption of caffeine in the diet. The statements in the guidelines specifically focus on caffeine in coffee, as that is where most of the research is focused. The guidelines say that moderate coffee consumption, which they describe as 3-5 eight ounce cups of coffee per day, can be incorporated in a healthy diet. They recommend a maximum amount of caffeine of 400mg per day. You can read more about it here: 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines

The guidelines add that if you aren’t already consuming these beverages, it is not wise to start. They also caution that some of these beverages have lots of added sugar and fat which should be limited in the diet. Pretty standard stuff, if you ask me.

What strikes me as interesting, however, is what they leave out of these guidelines – energy drinks and other caffeinated products. The availability of heavily caffeinated beverages and other foods has greatly increased in recent years. I recently was in the checkout line in the grocery store and noticed a chocolate bar labeled “Awake” that made all sorts of clever claims about what it’s caffeine could do for you. They make excess caffeine sound like an exciting addition to your life.

The problem at this point is that we increasingly have anecdotal evidence that there could be dangers from consuming high amounts of caffeine. Yes, I know that the experiences of a few people do not provide a scientific basis for making a recommendation against these products. But nearly every day on Facebook, I look at photos of the children of one of my former students, children who are growing up without their mom. She didn’t think energy drinks would cause her any health problems, but they did. Why would she? Certainly not from reading the labels of these products.

I realize that Dietary Guidelines need to be based on sound research. That’s as it should be. But let’s get that research done. In the meantime, I have been collecting articles and web links about the effects of caffeine, both good and bad. Please take a look at the information in my Flipboard Magazine on these products and think twice before consuming them.View my Flipboard Magazine.

]]>http://www.beyondroom108.com/caffeine-how-much-is-too-much/feed/0Seven Ways to Get More Out of Facebookhttp://www.beyondroom108.com/seven-ways-to-get-more-out-of-facebook/
http://www.beyondroom108.com/seven-ways-to-get-more-out-of-facebook/#commentsSat, 19 Mar 2016 01:36:23 +0000http://www.beyondroom108.com/?p=265It’s Easier Than You Think!

Of all the types of social media out there, Facebook remains my favorite. To me, no other form of social media allows for so much interaction between people. There are a lot of tips online about the technical aspects of Facebook and even a lot of articles about using Facebook for a business. But what if you just want to use it to keep in touch with friends? What if you have a new account and aren’t really sure how what to do with it? Here are my top seven tips for using your personal Facebook:

1. Check it regularly. Picture this scenario: You call your friend and leave a message on their voice mail. Seven days later they call you back and leave a message on your voicemail. How would that work for you? You can’t communicate with someone who isn’t there and doesn’t check there page. How often should you check it? Well, that is up to you, but to get the most out of it, I suggest you try once or twice a day minimum. That doesn’t have to take a lot of time and actually can be done in less than five minutes unless you choose to stay on longer.

2. Post something. Have you ever tried talking to a friend who never said anything? Never shook their head in agreement, never contributed in any way to a conversation? Facebook is a conversation. If you aren’t posting, you aren’t really participating. So occasionally, share a little glimpse of your life. That doesn’t mean you need to share every meal you eat, every single thing that annoys you, or every cute photo that you take. But share something. How often? Well that depends. I like to share things at least a couple of times a week. On the other hand, oversharing gets old fast too. No one has the time to read ten posts a day about your life, no matter how exciting it is.

3. Comment on other people’s posts. If someone speaks to you, don’t you usually respond? The same thing is true on Facebook. You don’t need to comment on every post, but comment on at least a few. If you agree with what someone has written, the least you can do is click the “like” button. “Like” on Facebook is kind of like nodding your head during a face to face conversation. It lets the person know you are listening. On Facebook it lets people know that you have seen and read their post. You now have even more options. You can respond with a heart and other emoticons (pictures) to show anger, laughter, sadness, etc.

4. Don’t use Facebook as a way to solve your every problem. I once read a post made to a community group where a person asked 5000+ members of the group what they should do about their mail not be delivered properly. Now, what do you suppose the chances of that post helping this individual solve their problem? Zero! She could have made a quick call to her local post office and saved a lot of time and aggravation for herself. No need to have a day long conversation about mail delivery with people who can’t solve the problem in the first place.

5. Facebook is not Google. If you can find the answer with a quick computer search, do it. Don’t ask your Facebook friends to do it for you. Why ask your Facebook friends the phone number of a restaurant when you can look it up yourself?

6. Don’t post cryptic messages. Most everyone who uses Facebook has figured out that some people really like attention. So at first when they see the posts like “What a horrible day this has been,” or the ever popular “I’m so done with people,” or the posts saying you’ve checked in at a medical establishment (but you don’t say what is wrong), it gets people’s attention. You will get some responses and questions and concern. But if you do that very often, most people will just move on and recognize that you crave attention or you are trying to create drama. Let’s face it, most emotionally healthy people try to avoid drama.

7. Post a few pictures. It takes a little effort to upload a photo, but at the very least, get a photo for your cover photo and your profile photo. If you truly can’t figure it out, get help from a friend. But seeing big gray boxes at the top of your page is not interesting. I think one of the best parts of Facebook is that you are able to share photos easily. Of course, you want to make sure you use common sense when posting those photos, but it doesn’t hurt to add some photos to your page at least occasionally. Oh, and check those photos after you upload them. Nothing like seeing a cover photo with every person missing the top of their head!

Facebook can be an amazing tool. Like so many other things in life, to get the most from it, you have to put in just a little effort. But once you do, you may be amazed at how useful it is to communicate with friends and family.

]]>http://www.beyondroom108.com/seven-ways-to-get-more-out-of-facebook/feed/1In My Ohio Garden – On Flipboard!http://www.beyondroom108.com/in-my-ohio-garden-on-flipboard/
http://www.beyondroom108.com/in-my-ohio-garden-on-flipboard/#respondMon, 02 Mar 2015 21:26:21 +0000http://www.beyondroom108.com/?p=260Do you use the Flipboard app? It is a great resource that lets you collect websites, photos, YouTube videos, etc., in one location. In the process it puts your information in an attractive magazine format. You can keep magazines private for your own use, or share them with others. Flipboard is ideal for iPads and smart phones. But even if you are working on a desktop computer, you will find it a great way to collect information. Check out my Flipboard magazine titled “In My Ohio Garden.” It contains photos of my garden as well as links to other information I have found inspirational or helpful.

That’s right. Nestled right in between grieving and healthy carbs I spotted “Happiness for Dummies.”

Happiness for Dummies

I guess there really is a book for just about everything.

]]>http://www.beyondroom108.com/feeling-down/feed/0Food & Fitnesshttp://www.beyondroom108.com/food-fitness/
http://www.beyondroom108.com/food-fitness/#commentsWed, 05 Mar 2014 02:44:02 +0000http://www.beyondroom108.com/?p=210March is National Nutrition Month. There is certainly no lack of nutrition information on the web. But how do you know what is good information? Paleo, low-carb, clean eating, and gluten free are a few of the popular diet trends right now. If you read many popular magazines or use Pinterest, you’ve probably also seen an abundance of recipes for kale and quinoa.

But how do you know what information on nutrition is reliable? How do you know if those green kale smoothies are really good for you? There are many guidelines out there, but here are a few things to consider:

1. What is the source of the information? For example, is it a reputable university or an organization you have never heard of before? Is it coming from a reliable news source?

2. Who is the person giving the information? What is their training? My first choice for nutrition information would be a registered dietitian. This link gives the requirements to become a registered dietitian and it involves extensive training. Many doctors are also knowledgeable about nutrition and can give you advice. Sadly, however, nutrition education is not a requirement to become a doctor at every medical school so your doctor’s knowledge may not be complete in this area.

3. What are the motives of the source of information? Is the person or website trying to sell you their products, foods, supplements, or books? If so, there still may be some truth to the information, but it wouldn’t hurt to check it out with a second source that doesn’t stand to get rich off of whatever is being recommended.

Nutrition is still a relatively new science. There will continue to be research and reports about foods that sometimes conflict. For that reason, it is important to keep reading and learning about nutrition. I have been using Flipboard to keep the websites and articles I find about nutrition, diet, exercise, and fitness all in one place. Please check out my Flipboard magazine, Food and Fitness to see some of the articles I have found recently. (If you are unfamiliar with Flipboard, you may want to check it out here. It can be used on your desktop computer or as a free app on your phone or tablet.)

A few parting thoughts before I take a break to eat a piece of healthy dark chocolate (well, it will be healthy if I can just eat one piece). We have all heard many times in life that if something sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't. No where is this more true than with nutrition. There is no magic food out there. But fortunately there are lots of good, tasty, and healthy foods for us to eat!

]]>http://www.beyondroom108.com/food-fitness/feed/2Work Hard!http://www.beyondroom108.com/work-hard/
http://www.beyondroom108.com/work-hard/#respondThu, 30 Jan 2014 14:25:12 +0000http://www.beyondroom108.com/?p=203
As we all know, this is certainly true!

]]>http://www.beyondroom108.com/work-hard/feed/0Putting That Body In Motionhttp://www.beyondroom108.com/putting-that-body-in-motion/
http://www.beyondroom108.com/putting-that-body-in-motion/#respondWed, 15 Jan 2014 20:04:51 +0000http://www.beyondroom108.com/?p=198What are your plans for 2014? Will you get your body moving? Or will “rest in peace” be more your style?

We all have been told over and over again that exercise is important. We know it helps our health. We know it helps our brain. We know it helps us feel better in every way. More accurately, I know how important it is to get daily exercise.

But why do I so often use every imaginable excuse to sit in a chair and not exercise, especially in the winter? I almost always begin my day with some exercise, but I can’t really say I am pushing myself very hard.

I am hoping, as I am sure many of you are, to make some changes this year. Please share what works for you when it comes to motivating yourself to exercise and I will do the same.

]]>http://www.beyondroom108.com/putting-that-body-in-motion/feed/0Feeling a Little Rough Around the Edges?http://www.beyondroom108.com/feeling-a-little-rough-around-the-edges/
http://www.beyondroom108.com/feeling-a-little-rough-around-the-edges/#respondMon, 28 Oct 2013 01:45:38 +0000http://www.beyondroom108.com/?p=193The weather has been sort of rough around here lately. Unseasonably cold, a few nights with frost, and then yesterday the final insult for a flower garden – nearly 40 mph wind gusts.

I grow roses in my garden. Actually a lot of roses. Over 100 bushes right now. When I walked outside late this evening, I really wasn’t expecting to see much. Yet, here was this beautiful rose glowing in the last rays of sun. (For you rose aficionados, the rose pictured above is a miniflora called “Showstopper.”) Granted, the edges of the petals are a bit tattered. It is far from a perfect rose. But its color and beauty stopped me in my tracks.

You see, I know what this rose has been through. I know it survived some awfully cold nights. I know it bloomed even with minimal sunlight the past few days. I know it was buffetted against other rose branches, with thorns no less, for hours yesterday. And still it has the audacity to open up today and add some beauty to a little corner of my garden. I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised because some rose varieties actually grow larger and have better color in cooler weather. But this bloom seemed even more precious because I knew what it had been through.

Sometimes I feel like that rose. I’m blown and tossed in every direction possible and work in conditions that are far less than favorable. But I can still do my best. I can still brighten my corner of the world. There will be rough spots, but beauty is still possible. Perhaps that which seems on the surface to be a negative in my life can actually help make my world grow larger and brighter.